Wednesday, February 17, 2010

Is it a good sign when my little brother and I pop into a liquor store one afternoon to pick up wine for a dinner party and we see this:

The man in front of us buys a bottle of gin. Does he leave it in the brown bag? No. He walks over to a large cooler of ice, picks up a cup from below a large sign reading "TO GO CUPS" and pours himself a four finger draw. Does he wait until he is outside to have a little sip? No. He takes a big swig, then walks outside, and gets into the driver seat of his vehicle.

Hey Liquor Store: WOW. Apparently you aren't aware there are laws regarding public consumption. Oh, you are not encouraging public consumption? Right. I am sure by "TO GO" your sign merely means "TO GO on your coffee table full of liquor only after you are safely at home".

Apparently you aren't aware there are also laws regarding drinking and driving. Oh, you are not drinking or driving? Of course you are not because you are a liquor store. Worry about the liability? Oh, you don't know what that word means?

Hey Atlanta Police: It is awesome that you can use all your cunning skills to catch me going FIVE MILES over the speed limit yet the liquor store that prominently displays TO GO CUPS might as well be weapons of mass destruction: another thing that is never going to be discovered.

Maybe I need to post a sign on top of my car reading: I LIKE TO EXCEED THE SPEED LIMIT because then I am assured no one will spot me.

Sounds more Frat house than Store. Amazing. I have driven in Atlanta several times recently and now I understand why I get run over. LOL By the way, The Cops, They are all sitting at the SC state line, waiting.

Kind of made you and your brother want to buy to bottles of wine didn't it? One to go and one to go home with.

JennyM I have a question for you...when you get stopped by the cops do you put your lawyer look on?

Hint: Reach up turn the overhead light on, keep your hands on the wheel until the cop is by your car, only then put the window down so he can see where your hands is as it moves...then cry. hahahahahaah

My cop friends told me that was what made them give warnings instead of tickets. They get all protective and shit once they KNOW their life is not in danger,

Sorry gorgeous... for once I disagree with you, but then you're a lawyer so we'll never agree about the law.

Yes, the action of the man, drunk, idiot, asshole, or whatever else you want to call him is awful and, of course, illegal.

However, he is an ADULT! Adults are supposed to be sufficiently grown up to make logical and respobsible decisions about their actions. If this guy (and from your tone I assume lots of others) cannot behave responsibly, then in my opinion not only should he be locked up forever, but it is the EDUCATION system that produced such a pathetic individual that is at fault, not the store owner.

We will never stop any of the rot in society until we can most of us just do something because it is RIGHT, not because we're told to.

Of course, that would make a lot less work for lawyers... so, sorry about that too :)

Not in Canada..oh no...Here you can only buy booze in a few authorized outlets. I'm always amazed at how widely available booze is in the U.S. The "to go cup" is really over the top though. "Mothers Against Drunk Drivers" or "MADD" would make their life hell here in Canada.

Ahh but technically they could not get him for drunk driving unless his levels were over the limit. So if that was his first drink he wouldn't have been.HOWEVER the store needs some serious rethinking on their policies concerning consumption .. ummm yeah

Hahaha, funny. Don't feel bad. I once told a cop to his face that he needed to stop harassing law abiding citizens like me and get out there and do his real job! Do I have to say that really didn't end well for me?

The "to go" cup thing? With our tight ABC laws in Mississippi there is no way that would evah fly in this part of The South.

That is unbelievable! Reminds me of the drive-thru liquor stores when I was in grad school in Ann Arbor. Just about every time I would drive through, I'd see a guy in front of me pop open whatever he was buying to take a swig....nice!

It is so frightening to me the amount of people who drink and drive. It seems illogical that a liquor store would have To-Go cups...amazing.In Florida, there is a "no open container law." And with good reason I think.

Also amazing, the crazy comments this has brought on by some of your readers. crazy I tell ya'

Oooh wow! I have been in a lot of liquor stores. Ahem. And have never seen them passing out "to go" cups. I mean, why did the guy even need a cup? Just crack open the bottle and take a slug, like a TRUE drunk would do.

When we moved to Montana 3 years ago it was still legal to drive with an open container.It took something like 5 tries to get the law passed and then it passed only because they were going to lose Federal money.Can you imagine?Montana has the highest per capita rate of drunk driving deaths in the nation and they thought that passing this law was taking away the person's RIGHT to drink and drive.erm, what about the other drivers' right to survive....?

That just blows my mind! What kind of people are working at that store? I would have had to contact the police or something. I would have felt obligated because what if he caused an accident or something? That guy has serious issues.

Don't even get me started on the Atlanta police who pulled me over heading to the hospital to give birth and ticketed me going 4 miles above the limit. Not that I'm bitter about that or anything.I wonder why that guy used a cup...if you're in that much need, just drink straight from the bottle! :)

I've never heard of this, that is nutty! How DO they get away with this?

Ouch, did you get a ticket recently?

Oh and I USED to have an iPod, I guess I should've mentioned that. Way back when they first came out I worked for Toronto Dominion Bank and they gave one to every single employee. I gave it to my husband who either lost it or broke it. He loves gadgets but he's like a toddler. Actually, some toddlers take better care of their toys than he does.

Oh, wow...Although, I must admit that my husband and I asked if we could get our spiked milkshakes to go the other night. Of course we knew the answer, but thought we'd enjoy them on the couch so much more seeing as how the baby was ready to go to bed. Next time, we'll just order a straight shake and spike it ourselves when we get home! ;)

just amazing. i see it all the time too. cops will stop people for stupid things that dont mean anything but always seem to not care about the serious problems. its simple though, catching people doing the little meaningless stuff is easier for cops to do, takes less time to deal with, and brings in more money (tickets) than the serious stuff does.

If I hadn't known you were in Atlanta, this would have been a sure sign you live in the south. Nowhere up north will you find a Brew-thru or drive-up Daiquiri shops! Up north we like to have our spirits well controlled :)

That really is unbelievable. I would think it would be a good way for the cops to meet their quota... sit outside the liquor store, spot those getting in their "weapons" with their to go cups and pull them immediately over. That just freaks me out.

You sound like me every time I see a small car pulled over for going ten over the speed limit while dangerously loaded semi after dangerously loaded semi - all with completely obscured license plates - barrel past an inch off the bumper of the poor soul ahead of them.

When I first moved to Florida long ago to go to College I was surprised to discover that they had drive through liquor stores. At the time I thought this was one of the greatest innovations but like Yeats I have experienced the coming of wisdom with time and now wish their were drive through fruit stands.

That truly is bizarre. John and I were in a liquor store just to buy a beer when it was so hot a few summers ago and I just plain and simply lost my head and wasn't thinking when I just popped the top on my can, not even intending to drink it. We were standing at the counter and John was paying. I got a VERY dirty look from the proprietor and a lecture about how he could lose his license just because my container was opened. Boy did I feel foolish.

That truly is bizarre. John and I were in a liquor store just to buy a beer when it was so hot a few summers ago and I just plain and simply lost my head and wasn't thinking when I just popped the top on my can, not even intending to drink it. We were standing at the counter and John was paying. I got a VERY dirty look from the proprietor and a lecture about how he could lose his license just because my container was opened. Boy did I feel foolish.